The manuscripts of His Grace the Duke of ... - Electric Scotland

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especially my good friend, the Advocat, who wreats to me very kyndly ;
but yiery litle in return of any thing I desyr of him ; but I knou he
ordinarly loses the letter, and forgats the business befor he have the
tyme to make any return. My Lord, I am very happy the Deuk i&
pleased with my procedeurs. I knou much will depend upon your Lordships
testimony. I shall be carfull of all your Lordship recomends to
me in your letters. For my Lord Kenmur, I have taken information of
his business, and lie will not be as yet onworthy of your protection, as
my brother will tell you, and as you will see by my letter to the generall
so I need not trouble your Lordship with any particulars. I wish the
Gordons here wer transplanted to the north, and excheanged with ane
other branch of that family, who ar so very loyall there and so disaffected
here. Mr. Alexander is here and I shall Ibllou his advyse: that
gentleman in the Glencairn shall have the honor of frequent visits, and
all other faveur I can shou him. Craigdallochs man upon his letter,
which I have rccaived, I shall lait ut upon caution, and all other things
in either of your letters I shall faithfully observe. The proposal I wrot
to your Lordship of, for securing the peace I am seur will please ia all
things, but on, that it will be som what out of the Kings pokett. The
way that I see taken in other places is to put lawes severly against great
and small in excicution; which is very just: but what effects does that
produce, but mor to exasperat and alienatthe hearts of the whollbody of
the people ; for it renders three desperat wher it gains on ; and your
Lordship knous that in the greatest crymes it is tlioght wyse[s]t to
pardon the multitud and punish the ringleaders, wher the number of the
guilty is great, as in this case of wholl contrys. Wherfor I have taken
ane other cours here. I have called two or three parishes togither at on
church, and after intimating to them the pouer I have, I raid them a
libell narating all the acts of parlement against the fanatiks, wherby I
made them sensible hou much they wer in the Kings reverence, and
asseured them he was relenting nothing of his former severity
against dissenters, nor care of mantening the esteblished goverment, as
they might see by his doubling ths fynes in the late Act of Parlement
and, in end, told them that the King had no dessein to ruin any of his
subjects he could recleam, nor I to inrich my self by their crymes, and
therfor any who would resolve to conform and lieve regularly might
expect faveur, excepting only recetters and ringleaders. CFpon this on
Sonday last their was about three hondred people at Kilkoubrie church
som that for seven year befor had never been there. So that I doe
expect, that with in a short tyme, I could bring tuo pairts of three to the
church. ButjWhen T have don that, it is all to no purpose ; for we will
be no sooner gon but in corns there ministers, and all repents and fall
bak to ther old ways ; so that it is in vain to think of any setlement here,
without a constant force pleased in garison ; and this is the opinion of
all the honest men here, and their deseir ; for there ar som of them, doe
what they lyk, they cannot keep the preachers from their houses in their
absence : So made ar som of their wyfes. So the thing 1 would propose
for remedie for all this, is, that their be a hondred dragoons
reased for this contry. The King may give maintenence to the men
and the contry to the horses ; which I shall answer for they shall
doe, because they or all in our reverence ; and is it raisonable
that this contry should be at less ex pence then other well affected
pairts of the kingdom ? Doe not we pay the suply for there follys ?
Have we not mor then they the expense of the militia ? Their disaffection
is a good raison why they should have less trust, but their trouble
and expense should be equal I to ours ; so when the Steuartry and shyr
of Galoua glue maintenance to a hondred horses, which is the on half of